piano wire

[Paul]

Clyde
I've come across strings that I couldn't splice because they would not bend
for the knot, just snap again. I'm wondering if it's aged from use or poor
wire?

Paul Chick
----- Original Message -----
From: Clyde Hollinger <cedel@supernet.com>
To: <pianotech@ptg.org>
Sent: Friday, October 12, 2001 6:20 AM
Subject: Re: piano wire


> Carl,
>
> I haven't restrung anything yet, so I am just passing on a story and a
hunch
> FWIW.
>
> 1.  At a chapter meeting a well-respected piano remanufacturer said,
"Listen to
> this."  He took a wire cutters and cut a tiny piece of music wire off a
piece of
> new wire.  Then he said, "Now listen to this."  He cut a tiny piece off a
> different piece, and the sound of that cut was decidedly more "musical"
than the
> first.  The wire was also shinier, which may or may not be related.  Then
he
> said, "We sent the first back.  We couldn't use it."
>
> 2.  It seems to me that using the brittle wire, as you call it, is risky
at
> best.  I've tuned pianos where it seems the strings of a particular size
are
> prone to break.  Could it that particular wire was brittle?  Probably.
Using
> brittle wire is likely to cause either you or someone else grief in the
future.
> My guess is that manufacturers of low quality pianos would use the wire
anyway.
>
> Regards, Clyde
>